Return of The Hunger Games
by Sci-fi-freak98
Summary: Panem has been peaceful without the games for twenty years. Katniss is happily married to Peeta with two children. A new president changes things up by relaunching the games, but with a few twists.
1. The Announcement (Katniss)

**Author's Note...**

** This first chapter is just to launch the story. It's not as exciting as the others will be. The end of this chapter sets the rest of the story in motion, so yes, I will update. I hope to put chapter 2 up in a couple days, probably Monday. Please review if you enjoy or have constructive criticism. Thanks for reading.. Now then, on with the chapter...**

I awake to tiny hands hitting me over and over again. After a moment, I feel awake enough, so I sit up.

"Hi my babies," I say, then yawn and pull them into a hug.

"Mommy!" They yell, then try to get out of my hug, I let them out after a few seconds.

After I realize Peeta isn't beside me, I start to smell pancakes.

"Daddy's almost done making breakfast, do you guys want pancakes?" I ask. Their eyes grow wide and they start to yell and push each other out of the way to get to the kitchen first. It's Perta's turn to be attacked.

I throw the blankets off before heading to the washroom to wash up. After I finish, I head to meet my family at the table. I laugh once I can see them. Each of Peeta's legs are being held onto by our children, and he's trying to move around so he can cook.

"Look it's mommy!" He says loudly, clearly trying to take the attention away from him, but it doesn't work.

"They already attacked me this morning," I say to him, then smirk and head to the table.

He sighs as he cooks, moving around slowly and awkwardly.

"Bow, Trident, can you come sit so daddy can finish up?" I ask, because watching him struggle is hard, especially since he's cooking for us. They sigh, but come sit with me anyways, and I bear hug them.

"Mommy, don't," Bow says annoyed. I probably wouldn't have let go, but her blue eyes pout with the rest of her face and I sigh and let her go. Trident hangs onto me tighter once Bow leaves and sits down.

"Breakfast is done," Peeta says as he puts food on plates. I get up to help him with that, since I can't cook at all. He smiles as we portion the food. Then I carry our plates, and he carries Bow and Tridents'.

We eat in silence for a few minutes. This is actually pretty calming. Bow and Trident are usually quiet when we have pancakes, because for some reason, they like them best, unlike Peeta and I who would prefer eggs. We all love bread, which Peeta bakes for us, so the toast is the best part of my meal.

"So, we are going to have a boring day, none of us have anything to do," Peeta says. "How about, I don't know, maybe we all go to-."

"THE MEADOW!" Bow and Trident both yell cutting him off. I smile, but Peeta pretends to be hurt that they cut him off. Trident started talking very young, and now he is barely two and can speak almost as good as Bow can and she's almost two years older than him.

"Well I was going to say sleep, but I guess that works too," Peeta jokes. He always knows what to say to make someone smile.

After we're all done eating, I go upstairs to get ready. Peeta enters the room a few minutes later, since he was busy dressing the kids.

Once we're all ready, we walk to the meadow. I love May, it has such nice weather and such a nice atmosphere. My birthday is in a week, and I'm really looking forward to that, Peeta says he has a surprise.

Bow and Trident run around in the meadow and laugh and yell at one another. Watching them have fun always manages to put a smile on my face.

Trident tries to keep up with Bow, but he's not quite as skilled in running as she is yet.

I have a bad feeling about this day, despite that fact that so far, it has brought nothing but joy. Peeta squeezes my hand, reassuring me; but something still feels off.

We stay at the meadow for a few hours and Peeta and I join the kids in playing and laughing. I all but forget about all of my worries.

Once we get home I take the kids upstairs to get washed up. After I do that, I take them to the play room and go get cleaned up myself.

I hear Peeta downstairs getting lunch ready. Once I'm done, I join Bow and Trident in the play room and watch them argue over toys and smile at them.

"Lunch is ready," Peeta says, peaking into the room.

They run to the kitchen table to eat, and I walk behind them.

Once we finish eating, the TV turns itself on and a news report starts airing.

"With President Paylor dying a few days ago, Panem has been in need of a new one; and luckily, we no longer need to worry about who that will be," a voice announces. "Panem, say hello to your new president Carl Steel!"

A man, who I'm assuming to be Carl Steel, walks up to a podium and smiles. His teeth are bright white and he is fairly young and very attractive.

"Hello Panem, it is my pleasure to announce the return of the Hunger Games this year. The uprising has come and gone and peace must continue to be ensued. I know some people will really hate this announcement, but it is a decision that I did not make. President Paylor was going to make the announcement the day of her demise, but a tragic event prevented her from doing so," he says smugly. "The game is going to undergo some changes however. These changes include the age range, number of tributes and general nature of the games. All thirteen districts and the Capitol must offer one male and female tribute, for a total of twenty-eight tributes each year. The tributes are to be no younger than twelve, and no older than seventeen. Two tributes may win if they represent the same district. There are other minor changes that will be addressed as the seventy-seventh Hunger Games unravel."

My breathing falters and my eyes burn. If my children weren't here, I would freak out and scream and cry. This can't be happening. I'm dreaming.

"The reaping for the games now and forever will be held on May eighth."

My world collapses on top of me and I get hysterical. I breathe deep and heavy and sob.

Peeta holds me and takes me upstairs.


	2. The Calming (Peeta)

Once I put Katniss in bed, I hear footsteps coming from behind.

"I'll be right back, I need to take care of the kids," I say calmly.

I pick up Bow and Trident, one in each arm and carry them to the play room. They get excited, run around and get out all the things that entertain them, then I go back to see Katniss.

"This can't be happening. It's a dream right Peeta; it's not real?" She sobs.

"I wish it was just as much as you do. It's a terrible thing, and it makes everything and everyone we lost in the war seem unimportant, but we need to stay as positive as we can," I say in a hushed voice as I wrap my arms around her.

"Prim, Finnick, Rue, everyone else, they all died so that we could live in peace without the Games; and now they memory of them is being tossed aside, like they don't matter, like they never did," she cries and she hugs me tightly.

I let her cry and sob for a moment, and let a few tears escape my eyes as well.

"I know it seems that way, but they do matter, they always did, and they always will. No matter what Carl Steel or anyone else says, they matter, especially Prim and Rue," I say reassuringly.

"Peeta, this means every year, they're going to drag tributes into an arena again. They'll be forced to kill one another before they even know what it all means. The Capitol is taking control again. Innocent people are going to die again," she says through deep breaths.

"I know there isn't anything positive, but let's try to not think about it," I suggest. "Also, we have children now; we can't spiral out of control, we need to set an example for them. We need to be parents."

"I know. I don't want to lose control of myself; I want to show our kids that it will be okay. I don't want to worry them, but I'm human; I can't just do what I want all the time," she says.

"Okay, well for right now you need to calm down. Then we'll go see the kids and we'll make them our priority, not everyone else," I say calmly, but also as firmly as I can.

She nods and wipes her tears. Her breathing slowly gets back under control, and I rub her back as she calms down.

I watch her face as she calms down, she always looks beautiful to me, no matter which facial expression she has. Her eyes always mesmerize me and I get lost every time I look into them.

"Let's go. The kids need us more than I need to be consoled," she says as though she's pathetic.

"Katniss, your feelings are important too. You'll always be important, but we need to put the kids' needs above us for the time being. They don't know what's going on and we can't worry them. What's happening is horrible, and we can talk later, once they're asleep," I say firmly, but sympathetically at the same time.

At that she walks out the door and to the play room and I follow her.

We play with them for a while, then we eat supper, and paint with them. When they go to bed, Katniss and I go to our room.

We walk into the washroom and brush our teeth. Then I strip down and jump in the shower. Katniss walks in a moment later.

"Hi, how's my beautiful wife?" I ask her.

"She's amazing, thanks to you," she says sheepishly. "How's my incredibly sexy husband?"

"He's fine. A bit drained from today, but also happy he got to have a full on family day," I respond.

She flashes her radiant smile and then kisses me. This kiss is more fierce than her normal ones; she lingers with a longing for it, as if she needed this kiss all day.

Once she pulls away, I get shampoo and soap. After we're finished getting clean, we stand under the warmth of the water for a while.

After a while, I get out dry myself and pull boxers out of the drawer and put them on. Katniss follows me, putting on a silk nightgown.

She kisses me then pulls me to bed. Once we're under the covers, she pulls into my chest and holds onto me tightly.

"I love you," she whispers softly.

"I love you so much more," I say, playing with her hair.

She smiles in response, and her mouth opens to say something, but is cut off by the ring of the phone.

"Hello," Katniss says as she answers the phone. She keeps talking to whoever called for a few minutes.

When she finally comes back to bed, there are tears in her eyes.

"That was Effie," she whimpers.

"What did she say?" I ask.

"She asked how her victors are doing. She asked about the kids. Then she apologized for the games," she says.

"It's not her fault the games are starting again."

"That's what I told her," she says, then swallow and hesitates.

"What did she say that upset you?"

"They're forcing her to be the escort for District 12 again," she says, then sniffles.

"What do you mean forcing?"

"They asked her, but we all know what will happen if she declines."

"Given that you're sad, am I correct in assuming she doesn't want to do it?"

"No, she doesn't. And she's also been asked to call us to let us know we're expected to be mentors."

"Katniss," I say, holding her cheek. "I really am sorry about everything this day has done to us. Do you want to talk about it?"

"No," she says, then wipes her tears.

"Okay, then we don't have to. We'll do whatever you want to," I say trying to comfort her.

"Peeta," she whispers. "I want you to make me forget about this day. I want to only think about us tonight. I want us to be separated from everyone and everything tonight. I want you."

She kisses me fiercely and pushes me down onto the bed. She kisses my neck and slowly pulls up her nightgown.

When I awake the next morning, I see her face and smile. She opens her eyes and smiles back at me, then kisses me deeply.

**Author's note...**

**This chapter is very Katniss/Peeta themed. Chapter 3 will introduce 2 new characters and will be from the perspective of one of them. The story will be told from 4 different POV's. Again, any feedback, including constructive criticism is welcome. Finally... Thank you so much for reading.**


	3. Reaping Day (Jake)

I grew up being told that I would never attend a reaping or see the Hunger Games, but here we are, on reaping day.

"Alana, I told you, if you're name is picked, I'm not going to let you go in alone. I'm going in with you, if you have to go," I say.

"You can't; just because I have to die doesn't mean you do," she says through a shaky voice.

"We don't even know if you'll get picked. We can't panic and argue over something we're not sure about. Let's just see what happens," I say to help her calm down. I refuse to let her go alone, if against all odds, she is chosen, then I'm going to volunteer to protect her.

"Is that Katniss Everdeen?" She whispers.

I look over my shoulder, and am shocked that it is.

"Yeah, but why would she go to the reaping? She doesn't have to," I respond in a hushed voice.

"She's looking at us. And I don't know why she would be going. She's the one who lead the rebellion, I thought she'd stay away in protest," she says.

I wait until she's gone before I respond.

"Maybe she's being forced to attend," I suggest. "To make us think she's on their side."

"She would never take their side, everyone knows that."

"I know. Let's just go, get this over with," I say, then kiss her.

She nods, then we walk to the square, holding hands.

When we get there, there are four lines; two lines for the girls, two lines for the boys. We get in the lines that are next to each other.

The line moves slowly, but eventually, I'm the next person in line, and Alana is three from the front. A lady grabs my right hand and pokes my index finger with a needle, then puts it on a paper. She scans the blood with a machine which reads out my name and age.

"Go stand with the seventeen year olds," she says sternly and impatiently.

I stand here for a while before the escort, Effie, steps onto the stage.

"Welcome to the reaping for the seventy-seventh Hunger Games. Today we will select our tributes," she says, her voice sounds strained as if it's full of anger or agony.

"As before we will select our female tribute first," she says. Her hand drops into the bowl and she pulls out the card from the top of the left of the bowl.

"Before I announce the tribute, I would like to say something," she says. "No matter which name I read, I know that this person is a huge part of history. The first tribute to be drawn in over twenty years. When you're in the arena, be strong, be brave, and above all, be smart."

She swallows, then opens the envelope and says, "The female tribute for district twelve is Alana Clark."

My ears ring in shock and I swallow hard. My eyes burn and I want to scream, but I can't; I need to protect her, and I can't do that if I cause a scene.

I inhale and exhale, slowly regaining breath control.

**Author's Note...**

**Sorry for the short chapter and weird ending. Lol. Don't worry though, this isn't the end of the reaping, just the end of the reaping from Jake's POV. Chapter 4 continues it from the POV of Alana. Once again I love feedback, even if it's negative, as long as it's constructive and not rude. Thanks for reading!**


	4. Fear (Alana)

"The female tribute for district twelve is Alana Clark," Effie says nonchalantly.

My heart pounds hard and fast and I lose grip on myself for a while.

Jake; he's going to kill himself to protect me and there's nothing I or anyone else can do to stop him.

A tear rolls down my cheek and jolts me back to reality. I'm either going to die or be scarred for the rest of my life. Nothing good can happen to me because of this; the only things I can think of this doing to me cause me to shudder in crippling fear.

My breaths become uneven and forced. For the first time ever, I need to make an effort to breathe.

With millions of thoughts and fears swirling in my head, I step forward and walk to the stage.

As I walk up the stairs to the stage, my eyes meet Katniss' and I see familiarity in them somehow; probably because she was in a similar position before.

Once I'm on the stage, I scan the crowd for Jake, and when I see him I lock eyes with him. His eyes are filled with agony and sympathy, but as I look deeper I see remorse for what he'll do next.

"Now for the boys," Effie says, then pulls a name out of the bowl. "The male tribute for district twelve is Alex Edison."

As Alex approaches the stage, he flinches uncontrollably.

"Now then," Effie starts. "Is there anyone who wishes to volunteer in the place of either of these tributes?"

"I volunteer!" Jake yells and walks forward immediately.

Alex takes a deep breath and his shoulders relax and loosen. Alex walks off the stage as Jake walks on it.

"Jake," I croak. "Why? I told you not to do this; I don't want you to die too."

"I had to," he says before pulling me into a kiss.

A guard pulls me away from him and another pulls him to the other side of Effie. I resist and try to run, but I'm held back by irresistible force.

"Ladies and gentlemen, the tributes of district twelve, Alana Cl-" Effie starts.

"Jake!" I scream, and try to break free from the guard who pulls me back.

"Let me go!" He yells.

I'm pulled into the building and Effie tries to find the words to keep going as the doors are slammed shut. I try to scream, but the hand over my mouth prevents me from doing so.

Jake is pulled into a room, but the guard keeps pulling me down a few more hallways before putting me in my room.

"If you kept your mouth shut, you two would be closer right now," he says harshly. The door is slammed hard against my back.

I slide to the floor, curl in a ball and wheeze as tears fall down my face.

We're both going to die because of me.

After an hour, I finally feel calm enough to stand. Once I'm up, I walk over to the mirror.

The tears cause my eyes to be clouded, making them appear more gray than blue, which is off compared to balanced mix of the colors that they normally are.

My face is a reddish color and my eyes are puffy. I look as if I've aged five years in the past two hours. The only thing that looks the same is my hair; the same shade of light brown it always has been.

A knock on the door cuts me off from studying my face. I look back to see Jake's parents.

My parents died when I was twelve, so I moved in with Jake and his parents. It took him forever to convince his parents to let me stay there; something about a thirteen year old asking his parents if his twelve year old girlfriend can live with them caused them to be unsure.

"Alana," Aria says softly, through tears. "I'm so sorry. Do you best; use your skills."

Cain just stares at me blankly, as if to say "It's your fault my son is going off to his death. I never should have let him see you."

"Did you see him yet?" I ask.

"Yeah. He said he's not scared, but I could see in his eyes that he is," Aria says.

"He told us to tell you not to worry, that he won't let anything bad happen to you," Cain says, as if to accuse me.

"We came to say good luck; we're not saying goodbye, because we know we'll see you again. Stay with him and don't let anything bad happen to either of you," Aria says.

After that we talk about how people outside are reacting for a minute or so, then the guard tells us our time is up.

The quietness eventually gives me a headache, which seems weird at first, but I can't think about it or it will get worse.

"Hey," a voice calls from the door.

"Katniss Everdeen," I say perplexed. "What are you doing here?"

"Katniss Mellark, actually. And I'm here to tell you something."

"What?" I ask

"We're going to be on the train early tomorrow morning," she starts, then leans in closer. "That's the only time we'll have to talk _privately," _she whispers quickly, then leans back.

"Okay, what else?" I ask playing along.

"We'll discuss training then, but for now, all you need to know is not to fully trust anyone and the first thing you need to do is find shelter. A knife can kill someone else, but pride is your worst enemy, stubbornness and stupidly originate from pride, and those are all things that can kill _you_."

**Author's Note...**

**Sorry for the long wait. Chapter 5 should be up soon, I'm not 100% sure when, but within the next week. It won't be as long a wait as chapter 4 was.**


	5. Train (Katniss)

"Katniss, wake up; it's time to head to the train," Peeta says softly.

"I don't want to," I whine as I turn onto my side and put the pillow over my head.

"We have to," he chuckles. "The tribute won't teach themselves."

"Fine," I groan. I slowly roll off the bed and walk to the bathroom to get ready.

"Trident, let go of her," I hear Peeta say down the hall. He's been taking care of the kids for the past few days while I've been depressed and getting used to the return of the games.

The person in the mirror isn't me; she's a version of me, but she's not really me. She's too sad, too tired, too scared, too lonely. I'm happy, energetic, satisfied and loved; I have a family and a life. The person in the mirror is ready to shut down.

I have to train kids to kill others, and then bid them farewell and hope they survive. My job is to either make monsters or corpses. I don't know how Haymitch, or anyone, ever did this. I'm terrified just thinking about it.

After my face and hands are washed, and my hair is brushed, I go back into the bedroom. I change into jeans and a pale pink t-shirt.

Once I head downstairs, Peeta and the kids are already out the door. I slip on my sandals, pick a sweater and run to catch up.

When we arrive at the Justice Building, we're escorted directly to the train.

"Katniss, Peeta, over here!" Effie calls once were on the train.

"Hi Effie," I say as I approach her; Peeta is held up by Bow and Trident.

"The tributes are in the next car, should I leave you alone with them?" She asks.

"Sure," I say, then turn around. "Peeta, I'm going to talk to them. I'll be right back."

"Okay. I'll try to keep them under controls," he laughs.

As the door slides open my heart picks up pace. Once I see their faces, I'm saddened by them.

I sit across from them, about fifteen feet away. "You guys look so sad; I don't even see fear in either of your expressions," I say.

"The fear will come eventually," Alana says.

When I look to my left, I see a bow with a few arrows. I decide to test Jake.

"Jake, why did you volunteer?"

"I wouldn't be able to live with myself if I let her go in and she died."

"What if you die and she comes back? Do you think she'd be able to live with herself?"

"I think she'll be fine."

"So you don't think she needs you?"

"I'll do my best to protect her, that's all anyone can do."

"I don't think she needs you to protect her."

He lunges and takes a few steps, then I pull the bow up, draw back an arrow and position it to penetrate his heart.

"Anger can kill just as easily as a sword. Other tributes will taunt you and test you; they'll find your weak spot and use it against you. Don't let your guard down, and don't ever, no matter what, lose control of yourself," I say calmly.

He sits back down slowly and looks at me angrily.

"Hey, I know this sucks and it's terrifying, but you need to try to be happy. I know it sounds impossible, and it is nearly; but there's hope, and that's all you need," I say trying to cheer them up.

"There's some hope, but it's barely a sliver," Jake says.

"It's enough," I say sternly. "We need to talk about strategy; what are some strengths that could help you in the games?"

"I have good aim and I'm a good swimmer. I also know how to use iodine and camouflage," Jake says. I finally see a glint of hope in his deep blue eyes, and it makes me smile.

"That's good. You'll have to talk to Peeta about camouflage, I know what it is, but I don't know anything beyond that," I laugh. "Alana, anything you can do?"

"I'm not terrible at aiming, but I'm not good either. I studied plants and animals and I know how to produce heat with almost anything. I just sort of know a lot of survival skills from science and history," she says optimistically.

"See, talking about things you're good at help bring out joy and hope," I point out.

I offer the bow and arrow to Jake, who takes it hesitantly.

"Let's see how good your aim is," I say more harshly than I meant to.

"This isn't what I normally practice with, but I can try," he says.

As he draws back, I point at a target on the far left wall. When he shoots if flies and hits the target a couple millimeters from the bullseye.

"That was really good, now let's work on your technique," I say. We spend the next couple of hours going over the technique of shooting arrows and throwing knives; Jake picks it up more quickly than Alana, but she learns fast too.

After a while, Peeta walks in.

**Author's Note..**

**Hey guys! I'm so sorry! I know I said it wouldn't be a long wait, but life hit me like a ton of bricks this past week and I wrote as quickly as I could. This chapter isn't that long, and I'm sorry for that too. There wasn't much for me to fit into this chapter. Next chapter will be the rest of the train ride and arriving in the Capitol (if it goes according to the story map I have). I won't make any promises about when the chapter will be up, since I know I won't be able to keep it. There will be an update though, I know this for sure.**


	6. Arrival (Peeta)

When I walk into the car Katniss is in, an arrow nearly skewers my head.

"What are you doing?" I ask nervously.

"We're training," Katniss says calmly.

"You almost killed me!" I say through a deep breath. Katniss just smiles and Jake and Alana laugh.

"You and me both," Jake chuckles.

"What's he talking about?" I ask Katniss. I fear the answer, but I know that I need it for at least some peace of mind. "You can't shoot the tributes."

"Calm down Peeta, I was testing him. I wouldn't actually shoot him. And they have names you know, it's rude to refer to them as 'tributes'," she says sternly.

I guess I could see how it's rude; they're people with names, families, friends, and identities. Being a tribute isn't who they are any more that it is who I am, or who Katniss is. They have lives and feelings and Katniss and I have to do everything we can to keep them alive so they can keep living them.

"You're right, Jake and Alana aren't tributes; they're people. I'm sorry. But you still shouldn't help them train until we get to the Capitol," I say.

"Why not?" She asks.

"What on earth is going on in here? Katniss why are there arrows everywhere? What did you do?" Effie shrieks as she walks in. "We can not afford to get in trouble this time."

"I don't see the big deal?" Katniss says. "It's not like we're attempting to murder them."

"These arrows are all yours I take it?" Effie sighs.

"Some of them, but not all of them. Jake and Alana shot some as well," Katniss says.

"That's not possible; and if it is, then I need to see them shoot!" Effie shouts in excitement.

Once Effie sees them both shoot, she sends them to the dinner table, but tells Katniss and I to wait.

"There are many reasons why we can't afford any trouble this year. First off, this isn't President Snow. Second, these are not _just_ games; they're a lot more than that. This is a relaunch of the games and they will not be taken lightly by any of the new leaders. When Steel won, he got rid of the old council, and brought in his own. They need this to be perfect if they want it to keep going. There has never been this much pressure since the first games. Any cheating or early training or even a tribute getting hurt before the games start will be fatal for that entire district," she says sternly. "And that's an extremely short version of why we need to careful. We'll talk more later."

"Let's just go talk in private?" Katniss suggests.

Effie nods and she leaves with Katniss. I stay with Jake and Alana and talk to them about strategy (which I learn Katniss already went over with them).

When we arrive in the Capitol, my heart pounds so hard I can hear it. Katniss stiffens and takes a tight hold of my hand. Jake and Alana appear to be nervous, but not terrified; I guess this could be a good thing, but they need a healthy fear at this point.

"You seem to be doing well," I say as calm as I can.

"You told us to act as calm and confident as possible," Alana says.

"I know it's hard, but it will help in the long run," Katniss says, exhaling deeply.

When the train stops, my heart nearly stops along with it. I haven't been here in years, and the memories flood my brain and almost cause me to pass out. All I see is myself trying to kill Katniss and successfully killing Boggs and who knows who else.

I feel overwhelmed to the point where I want to scream, cry, sleep, and disintegrate into the air all at once.

"It's okay," Katniss says, clearly picking up my body language. She squeezes my hand even tighter and we walk towards the door together.

Jake walks out in front of Alana and I go out behind her with Katniss behind me. I take a deep breath as I step off the train

**Author's Note...**

**I'M SO SORRY FOR TAKING SO LONG! I got really busy and then I was too tired. I actually forgot that I even had a fanfiction at one point. I hope to update more frequently now. For July though, I will have limited time as I'm going to be on a remote island. I will hopefully post 3 chapters for that month but can't promise anything. Anyways.. Enjoy! **


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